Sunday, March 11, 2018

Kaijus going head to head with Jaegers. Or in non-geek speak - Monsters vs Super Machines. That was the main crux of "Pacific Rim", the otaku-pleasing, Guillermo del Toro-directed monster film that became an international hit back in 2013.

The movie had thrilling action sequences, a great chemistry between the two leads Charlie Hunnam and Rinko Kikuchi, a wonderful Asian female character, fun witty repartee, and the guiltiest pleasure of all -- Idris Elba. Since then, fans (including Red Dot Diva) have been clamouring for more Pacific Rim.

In the years that followed, Guillermo del Toro tried his best to get a sequel off the ground. He had a script ready, however due to conflicts between Legendary and distributor Universal Pictures, production was put to halt. Finally, in early 2016, Legendary announced that the sequel called "Pacific Rim Uprising", will go ahead with a new director and script, with Guillermo del Toro staying on as a producer.

The new director is Stephen S. DeKnight, who is best known as the creator and writer of Starz's "Spartacus" series, is also the showrunner for the first season of Marvel's "Daredevil" TV series.

Monday, February 26, 2018

One thing that stands out about the new Supreme Leader Kylo-Ren is his luscious, helmet-proof, raven-hued hair. It is the kind of hair that makes many Star Wars fan, including Red Dot Diva, to wonder - what kind of shampoo does Kylo-Ren use?

When asked about his preferred haircare product, he said, "whatever's left from the film set". Someone then suggested it was Bumble & Bumble shampoo & conditioner. So, hmmm, the Dark Side must smell really nice. *sniff sniff*

The Q&A ran longer than expected, with Adam Driver extending his allocated time slot twice, as he patiently fielded as many questions as he could from the fans. Most questions have already been asked before in various "Logan Lucky", "Paterson" and Star Wars promos leading up the release of "The Force Awakens" and "The Last Jedi", but there were a few humorous gems from Adam, who was in a very good mood that night.

There is a pop up store by Bricks World selling various Lego sets across the different brands, but of course LEGO Ninjago sets take up the most prominent display.

The LEGO #NINJAGOCHALLENGE Event Play Area consists of 4 stations, the Briefing Station 1, where a staff will explain to you what the entire event is about. (Note that the staff might dissuade adults if there is a line of little kids already waiting in line. Try to gather your own “team” of 3 adult players to take part in the same time slot!)

Saturday, June 3, 2017

Red Dot Diva was not able to be there when the shop opened at 12 PM but she heard that there was a good sized crowd waiting to celebrate the occasion! The first 200 folks at GnB were also able to pick up a "Wonder Woman" movie poster each!

Red Dot Diva did manage to drop by the shop after 2 PM to buy a Wonder Woman comic (if you are wondering, it's the anthology "Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman Vol. 1" by
Gail Simone, Ethan Van Sciver and many more creators) as well as collect her fun freebies.

If you were not able to make it there today, Red Dot Diva has four sets of "Wonder Woman" movie posters, paper cardboard tiara/ bracelet sets and pins for to give away!

To join the contest, simply:
1. Follow Red Dot Diva on Twitter and/ or Facebook
2. Share the contest post on your timeline. Please ensure the post is public.
3. Tweet or post a photo of yourself together with your own real life Wonder Woman (i.e. it should be an actual person!) and elaborate as to why she is a Wonder Woman in 35 words or less.
4. Do ensure that the person in your pic has given you consent to post her photo.
5. Open to Singapore residents only, of age 16 and above. Entries to be submitted by Tuesday, 6 June 2017, 9 PM
6. Winners will be chose by Thursday, 8 June 2017, and notified via Twitter or Facebook Message/ Comments section.
7. Winners must be willing to email Red Dot Diva with more information (e.g. mobile number) to facilitate prize collection. Prize collection will be at Shaw Centre during working hours from Monday to Friday.
8. Red Dot Diva reserve the right to make changes to the contest terms and conditions, as well as replace or change prizes at any time without prior notice.

Thanks to local comic book store GnB Comics, there will indeed be a local Wonder Woman Day festivities this Saturday, 3 June 2017!

Wonder Woman first appeared in "All-Star Comics No. 8" back in 1941. Since then, the Amazon Princess has captured the hearts of fans all around the world for more than 75 years, and has come to represent strength, courage, wisdom and most of all, love.

To join in the tribute to Wonder Woman and her first solo movie debut, GnB Comics will be giving away the following items FREE with any purchase on 3 June 2017, from 12 PM to 7 PM.

Monday, March 20, 2017

At a small "Ghost In The Shell" fan event last Friday, 17 March 2017, Red Dot Diva had the chance to watch a 14-minute sneak peek of the live action movie in 3D.

Despite the furore over the casting of Scarlett Johansson as Major (which is based on Motoko Kusanagi in the manga by Masamune Shirow) and "whitewashing" of the popular franchise, the film looks visually stunning. It took just a few minutes for Red Dot Diva to feel immersed in the near-future cybernetic world, and she wished it was a full movie screening instead.

"Ghost In The Shell" is a story about a cybernetic anti-terrorist field commander Major, who is determined on going after a hacker called The Puppet Master. There may be a larger purpose to The Puppet Master's plans to take control of Hanka Corporation's artificial intelligence programs, and Major begins to uncover her past and question about her own existence.

For the live action movie, instead of The Puppet Master, the main enemy is cyborg ghost-hacker named Kuze (Michael Pitts). Or rather, Kuze will a mix of the two anime characters in the upcoming film directed by Rupert Sanders.

Saturday, March 4, 2017

It's time to countdown to the live action movie of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast", which will launch at Red Dot Island movie theatres on 16 March 2017.

The movie stars Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast, Luke Evans as Gaston, Josh Gad as LeFou, amongst many others including Emma Thompson as Mrs Potts and Sir Ian McKellen as Cogsworth.

Ever since the animated movie back in 1991, the image of a red rose in a bell jar has become synonymous with "Beauty and the Beast". In the original movie version - which Red Dot Diva could watch over and over again - the enchanted floating rose represented a clock, a visual reminder of what beauty really means, counting down to the end of the spell placed on the Beast, when he would return back to human form if he found everlasting love by his 21st birthday, or forever remain as a monster. Of course, for the romantics, the red rose is also a symbol of true love.

From now till 26 March 2017, fans can revel in the larger than life Rose and Bell Jar on display at Raffles City mall.

Sunday, February 12, 2017

Total geekgasm is how Red Dot Diva would describe "The Lego Batman Movie", which premiered in local theatres on Thursday, 9 February 2017.

There's LEGO of course, kapow! action, tons of comic book references, several pop-culture nods, and Batman. Lots and lots of Batman! In fact, "The Lego Batman Movie" is more Batman than the Batman movies of recent years, and most of all, it's the funniest!

With Will Arnett providing Lego Batman with his imitable deep raspy voice, the animated bricked Dark Knight is even more larger than life, his over-the-top heroic gestures and constant declaration that he only works alone, is just but an excuse to avoid feeling abandoned again. Even his arch nemesis The Joker (voiced wonderfully by Zach Galifianakis) knows that all too well.

Friday, February 3, 2017

The awesomely successful "The Lego Movie" was the film that introduced us to the egoistical but hilarious "I'm Batman-I Only Dress In Black"-LEGO Batman (Will Arnett). Since his superhero personality is too Huge to remain in just one movie, the Bat is BACK. This time, he will be calling all the shots (or he thinks he will be) in "The LEGO Batman Movie", by going up against The Joker (Zach Galifianakis) in order to save Gotham City.

Not quite used to working with a team, Batman also faces challenges battling the band of villains together with orphan Dick Grayson aka Robin (Michael Cera), Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl (Rosario Dawson) and the ever loyal and classy butler, Alfred (Ralph Fiennes).

Directed by Chris McKay, and produced by Dan Lin, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Roy Lee,
"The LEGO Batman Movie" premieres in Red Dot Island theatres on 9 February 2017!

For the last couple of months, Team Batman ,i.e. LEGO Batman himself, Robin and Batgirl, has been meeting their fans at shopping malls and cinemas around the island. Being hardcore fans of #TeamRichGuys, Red Dot Diva and geek-girl pal Jas managed to catch the trio at Cathay Cineleisure the week before Chinese New Year!

Lady Raine and kampongchicken, both Red Dot Diva's friends who happen to own rather peculiar handles, were on site at the launch yesterday (29 November 2016) evening. The opening ceremony was also graced by the presence of the folks from 501st Legion SG, Cathar Rebel Baseand FightSaber!

Here is a quick photo preview of what you can expect when you visit Vivocity from now till 18 December. The towering AT-ACT is gigantic!!

Monday, November 28, 2016

In the not too distant future, 12 sleek pod-like alien ships appears above different cities around Earth, leaving humanity to wonder about the visitors' actual purpose for arriving on this planet.

Directed by Denis Villenueve, scifi movie "Arrival" received rave reviews when it was screened at the Venice Film Festival in September 2016. The movie was released in the U.S. market in November 2016, and film critics and scifi fans applauded its philosophical and introspective message as well as its tight structure.

Sunday, November 27, 2016

The latest battle between the Rebellion and the Empire is coming soon, and Star Wars can be a part of it at Vivocity's Central Court B, Level 1 from 28 November to 18 December 2016!

The mall is hosting an interactive event leading up to the premiere of "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story". According to a full-page ad published in The Sunday Times' Life Section (dated 27 November 2016), there will a list of very fun and immersive activities in store!

1. Ogle at a 8-metre tall AT-AT Walker at the event.Red Dot Diva is not sure if it's a similar At-At that she saw at Star Wars Celebration Europe. However, since this is to promote "Rogue One", it would most likely be the version of all-terrain vehicle was shown in the movie's trailer, which are "not, technically, AT-ATs" as tweeted by Lucasfilm's Pablo Hidalgo. They are AT-ACTs, which are larger and used for transporting heavy equipment or ammunition.

Friday, November 25, 2016

Local fans of the Star Wars franchise, information on the advance ticket sales for "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" has just been announced!

As Citibank is a major corporate sponsor for "Rogue One", their card holders will have the exclusive chance to buy IMAX 3D tickets on 28 November 2016, 10.00AM for the earliest slot on 14 December 2016, 7.00PM only.

After which, the public will be able to purchase tickets for IMAX 3D and all other formats from 29 November 2016, 12.01AM on the following cinema websites:

Sunday, November 20, 2016

With many of the social media timelines filled with friends who have polarizing views about the results of the USA election, perhaps there is need for some time out. A feel-good kind of time out.

Watching "Hunt for the WilderPeople", a New Zealand film written and directed by Taika Waititi, is a heartwarming panacea for all the angsty, angry discussions taking place on the internet right now. It provides assurance that a genuine friendship can be formed even when two human beings are very different from each other. Logical Red Dot Diva knows that this does not happen easily in real life, but movie escapism can sometimes be good for mental health. ;)

"Hunt for the WilderPeople" is essentially a hilarious buddy dramedy with a quirky take on the fugitives on the run trope. The movie focuses on the adventures of two unlikely characters - chubby, orphaned, city street kid Ricky Baker (Julian Dennison) who thinks he's a hip hop thug and his grumpy over-60 ex-prisoner/ farmer/ super-bushman foster uncle Hec Faulkner (a very silver foxy Sam Neill).

Friday, October 21, 2016

Actor Auli'i Cravalho, who voices Disney's newest princess Moana from the upcoming CG-animated movie of the same name, will sail into Red Dot Island for a press junket and meet and greet at a special event held on 9 November at Marina Bay Sands.

15-year-old Auli'i Cravalo, a Native Hawaiian, was selected to be Moana from hundreds of talent from the Pacific Islands who had auditioned for the role.

Thursday, August 4, 2016

Commercially successful and given the thumbs up by gamers as well as reviewers, Ubisoft's online third-person shooter video game Tom Clancy's "The Division"™ is set to crossover to the big screen as a live action-adventure movie.

The game was released in March 2016 and sold more copies in one day than any other games in the industry. It reportedly garnered sales of over USD 330 million globally in the first 5 days of its release, and is also Ubisoft's best-selling game.

Oscar-nominated Jessica Chastain ("Crimson Peak", "The Martian", "Zero Dark Thirty") and Jake Gyllenhaal ("Everest", "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time", "Brokeback Mountain") have been attached to the project. Red Dot Diva is looking forward to seeing the two capable actors kick-ass on screen while fulfilling the mission to rebuild post-pandemic Manhattan.

Saturday, July 2, 2016

Red Dot Diva digs some of mega pop star Rihanna's tunes from time to time, but when she heard her latest song "Sledgehammer" featured in the new "Star Trek Beyond" trailer, Diva thought it was such a perfect fit! Her sultry vocals in the haunting melody provided the other-worldly, uplifting feel that the Trek franchise is known for.

Sunday, June 12, 2016

"World of Warcraft" (WoW) is an immensely popular multi-player game by Blizzard Entertainment, where one could role-play as different fantasy characters like mages, elves, humans and orcs to fulfill various quests. Millions of player accounts have been created since its first version was released in 1994.

With recent technological advances in the field of VFX, the company was keen to translate its success across to the big screen. In fact, a Warcraft movie was announced in 2006 as a project undertaken with Legendary Pictures, which means it has taken about 10 years for it to arrive at its final version.

"Warcraft: The Beginning", as suggested in the title, bypasses the recent WoW game scenarios and heads right back to the start - the battle of Orcs vs Humans.

Thursday, June 2, 2016

Continuing the string of glitzy red carpet premieres and celebrity appearances held in Red Dot Island this year, "The Ghostbusters" team from the movie reboot will also be making their way here to meet the fans.

As part of the red carpet event, fans are invited to join in the attempt to set the Guinness World Record for the Largest Gathering of People Dressed as Ghosts at a Single Venue.

Not just ordinary ghosts mind you, but as the iconic No-Ghost Sign usually seen as "The Ghostbusters" logo.

Saturday, April 16, 2016

What did Red Dot Diva tell you? It's always a win to join #TeamRichGuys, coz when you do, you'll get the flow of monie$$. And with that, you can pay for the best option(s) to meet #TeamCap at Marina Bay Sands this coming Thursday, 21 April 2016!

The team behind STGCC, in partnership with Disney and Singapore Tourism Board, has organized a host of activities for fans called the "Marvel's Captain America: Civil War Festival", that includes the South-East AsiaBlue Carpet Premiere for the "Captain America: Civil War" movie. The 4-day long festival held from 21 to 24 April 2016 at the Marina Bay Sands' Event Plaza at the Promenade, also offers three festival packages. Two of these give fans the chance to meet the #TeamCap cast members who will be attending the premiere.